Off-net ‘Roseanne’ bows with Nielsen demo gold

KCOP’s “Roseanne” marked its first Nielsen sweeps in off-net syndication by becoming the top demographic performerin Los Angeles between 4 and 8 p.m.

In Arbitron, KTTV’s “Married … With Children” proved victorious, while KTLA’s “Full House,” KABC-TV’s “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune” also made strong showings.

Only eight out of 47 shows appearing in early fringe dominated the lists of series most viewed by key demo targets.

Without any major post-election crises, O&O newscasts were noticeably absent from the lists of top-ranking demo grabbers.

The big story was KNBC-TV’s year-to-year slippage in key news demos coupled with KCBS-TV’s gains. KABC continued to hold a commanding lead.

At 4 p.m., KCBS’ “Geraldo” beat KNBC in women demos as well as adults 18-49, according to Nielsen.

In the 5 p.m. race, KCBS gained a point in older men and women viewers and beat KNBC in women 25-54, per Nielsen. Arbitron showed KCBS tying KNBC in men 18 -49 and 25-54 while KABC held relatively steady in the key women audience.

KCBS improved among men 18-49 and 25-54 at 6 p.m. and tied KNBC in nearly every key demo in Nielsen. According to Arbitron, KCBS was the only newscast to show increases, improving a point in men and adults 18-49 and tying KNBC in those demos.

KABC declined among adults and men 25-54 despite a 1 point gain in household rating.

Nielsen results from November show fax queen “Roseanne,” which KCOP airs back-to-back from 6-7 p.m., establishing a 1 to 2 point lead over all other shows among women 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54.

The sitcom’s 8 and 9 ratings among younger women proved to be a rare occurrence. In today’s competitive early fringe environment, programs seldom break the 7 rating barrier.

Among women, “Roseanne” at 6:30 p.m. even managed to beat the big ratings achieved by the “Oprah Winfrey Show,” which airs from 3-4 p.m. on KABC.

Compared to November 1991, KCOP was the only station in Nielsen to show increases in all key women demos weekdays from 6-8 p.m. — a critical revenue-generating daypart for indies.

KTLA made its gains in kids and women 18-34 thanks to the strength of “Full House.”

KABC’s addition of the older-skewing “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel” to its lineup provided the O&O with a 3-point household gain from 6-8 p.m., but the gameshows had little impact on demo averages. Still, both gameshows improved year-to-year in key younger demos after moving to KABC from KCBS.

The latter station took a beating in access following the loss of the gameshows, with “You Bet Your Life” faring poorly in both services and pulling its best rating (a 3) among women 25-54 in Nielsen.

Other stations finished the sweeps equal or down from their year-ago 6-8 p.m. demo standings.

KCOP was also the top indie station in key demos from 4-5 p.m., with the “Montel Williams Show” leading the way. The station also claimed the No. 1 spot in women demos from 5-6 p.m. with the “Cosby Show” and “A Different World.”

The story was different in Arbitron, with the key demo categories led by “Wheel,””Jeopardy!” or “Married,” depending on the age target.

“Married” buried its competitors in the younger male demo categories, with the raunchy sitcom holding a whopping 5 point lead over its nearest competitor, “Jeopardy!,” in Arbitron at 7 p.m. among men 18-34.

By adding a second run of “Married” at 6 p.m., KTTV helped improve the time period year-to-year. The station gained 2 points in both men 18-34 and 18-49.

Top shows in Arbitron peaked lower than in Nielsen in the female demos, but more series in Arbitron achieved at least a rounded 5 rating.

Several series posted year-to-year losses in Arbitron, with KNBC’s “Hard Copy” losing 1 or 2 points in each category.

KCOP’s “Star Trek: The Next Generation” strip from 7-8 p.m. lost 2 points in all but one category year-to-year (it dropped 1 point in men 18-34).

In Nielsen, “Trek” held its ground in all categories from the previous November and jumped a point in men 18-49. Nielsen showed the space series finishing second in men during the 7-8 p.m. access block.